Magnetic rotatable game device



Feb. 15, 1966 M. l. GLASS ETAL MAGNETIC ROTATABLE GAME DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 16, 1964 [12 vszzzar's Feb. 15, 1966 I GLASS ETAL 3,235,260

MAGNETIC ROTATABLE GAME DEVICE Filed Jan. 16, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet Z O o O o o O o O o O 5 O O O O O 0 O o o o 0 Z o 72 Ci 0 Q) a fzzvszzzar's B A/Zarwh/G/ass 677/" an %/MM%%Z, (ZZZ, 59 5 United States Patent 3,235,260 MAGNETIC ROTATABLE GAME DEVICE Marvin 1. Glass and Henry Stan, Chicago, Ill., assignors to Marvin Glass & Associates, Chicago, 111., a partnership Filed Jan. 16, 1964, Ser. No. 338,116 3 Claims. (Cl. 273-141) The present invention relates to games, and particularly to a magnetically actuated game in which the fortunes of the players are determined largely by chance, and in which the several operations are of such a nature as to hold the interest of players of a variety of ages, and in which a certain amount of judgment must be exercised in addition to the mere activation of the mechanism, in order to take advantage of the results of the chance mechanism. Although not limited to such environment, the game lends itself well to a somewhat grotesque setting, and in the illustrative embodiment disclosed involves Voodoo dolls in which pins are stuck as the game progresses, and a magnetically actuated chance mechanism which is operated by the players, and which directs their procedure. Accordingly, the principal object of the invention is to provide a magnetic game directing mechanism which will direct the players by chance, and from which directions they may exercise their skill and judgment to increase their fortunes or to protect their interests, as the case may be.

In playing the game, each player in turn stirs the contents of a witches pot, after which he rotates a simulated tree limb from which hangs a skull. When the skull reaches a predetermined spot, determined by the results of the stirring, it will change its position or orientation noticeably, and at this point, part of the tree limb will point out the particular directions which the player is to follow. The player has a choice of procedures, and may take a number of pins, in accordance with the directions, and stick them in the dolls of his opponents, or he may remove a specified number of pins previously stuck in his doll by his opponents, a player being eliminated whenever all the holes in his doll are filled with pins. The object of the game is to eliminate the other players in the game by filling their dolls with pins while protecting the player's own doll from becoming completely filled.

Each player is provided with a set of tokens of different degrees of power. The sets of instructions preferably include a choice, the player being privileged to take a specific number of pins and stick them into the dolls of his opponents, or to give up a token and have the alternative privilege of either taking a specified larger number of pins, or of. removing a specified number of pins from his own doll. A player may thus look ahead and endeavor to spend his tokens to best advantage. Each doll is provided with a predetermined number of pin receiving holes, and whenever all of the holes are filled that particular player is eliminated. All of the dolls have the same number of holes, and when all of the players but one have been eliminated, the remaining player is the winner.

The invention is more comprehensively described in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of the magnetic game as a whole;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary, perspective view of the active portion of the same;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary, perspective view of a movable element;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged, fragmentary, vertical sectional view on the line 4--4 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is an elevation of one of the Voodoo dolls;

3,235,260- Patented Feb. 15, 1966 The magnetic mechanism comprises a hollow game board 12 as seen particularly in FIGURES 1 and 4. The board consists of a bottom wall 14 and a top wall 16 spaced from bottom wall 14 by means of suitable side walls as 18, so that the structure will have a clear space within. Upper wall 16 may be considered the board proper, and has an opening 20 substantially at its center which corresponds with the bottom of a simulated stew pot 22. Beneath opening 20 a pan-like element 2 4 is journaled on an upstanding pin 26 fixed in relation to bottom wall 14, and has an arm 28 extending radially therefrom in position to swing completely about pin 26 within the confines of the space between upper wall 16 and bottom wall 14. Pan 24 is relatively shallow, and is provided with a plurality of baffies or ribs 36, which serve as stylus engaging portions and by which pan 24 and its attached arm 28 are rotated, as will appear. It is within the contemplation of the invention that other types of bearing could be used in place of pin 25 to suspend pan 24- and arm 23 in a freely rotatable manner.

At its outer extremity arm 28 has a magnetic element 32 which will be displaced about pin 26 by rotation of arm 28. Arm 28 is rotated by the stirring action of a stylus in the form of a simulated bone 34 which is inserted in pot 22, and which extends entirely through the same and through opening 29 so as to extend into pan 24. Pot 22 preferably has a lid or cover 36 providing a suitable opening through which bone 34 extends, so that the stirring action may be performed without awareness on the part of the player of the rotation of pan 24. As will be apparent, the lower portion of bone 34 engages one or another of baffies 30 during the stirring motion so as to cause rotation of pan 24.

Pot 22 has rotatably engaged about the lower portion thereof a simulated tree branch generally designated as 38, having an outwardly and upwardly extending limb portion 44), a pair of spaced twigs or finger portions 42 and 44 which may bracket between them one or another of a series of sets of instructions 46, 48, Si) and 52, printed on the upper surface of upper wall 16. Limb portion 40 is of a length so that its outer end overhangs the path of magnet 32, as the latter revolves about pin 26.

At or near its outer extremity limb 40 has suspended a simulated skull 54, by means of a rubber band, cord 56 or other flexible member having a slight degree of torsional stability, so that skull 54 will remain facing in one direction if not disturbed. Skull 54 carries preferably therewithin a magnet element 58 which, as skull 54 travels about pot 22, will be urged into alignment with magnet 32 by the attraction between the two magnets.

skull 54, when not influenced by magnet 32 in a predetermined relation to pot 22, as for example facing away therefrom, while magnets 32 and 58 are so placed that the tendency of the magnetic attraction will be to turn skull 54 into another relation with pct 22, for example, into a position facing the pot, as shown in FIGURE 2. As tree branch 40 is rotated about pot 22, skull 54 will therefore give an indication when it is directly over magnet 32, by turning on its own axis into another position, and it is likely to vibrate somewhat for a short period with eery effect. This action indicates where the player stops the rotation of tree branch 38, whereupon the twigs 42 and 44 will bracket or indicate one of the sets of instructions as 46. The twigs therefore form an index to designate the particular instructions to be followed for that particular play. If the twigs fail to fairly bracket one of the sets of instructions, the set which is most nearly bracketed may be chosen, or if this cannot be done, the player may be granted another chance to stir the pot and rotate the tree branch.

In view of the relatively weak impulse transmitted between the magnets 32 and 58, the torsional resistance of member 56 is very light, preferably, and in the present embodiment it is formed by a rubber band including a pair of cords 60 and 62, separated a little distance, and extending through a suitable opening 64 in the extremity of limb 40.

Since the distance between magnets 32 and 48 will have a rather large effect on the strength of the turning action imparted to skull 54, it is preferred to make this distance adjustable, and for this purpose, member 56 is made in the form of an endless loop, and engaged around one or another of a series of hooks 66 spaced at varying distances from opening 64. The particular hook chosen will determine the height of skull 54 above upper wall 16 and, accordingly, the distance between magnets 32 and 53. The two strands 60 and 62 will tend to remain parallel, and when disturbed by rotation of skull 54 will exert a very gentle force tending to return it to its original position with the strands parallel. Conversely, a very gentle force exerted by the magnets tending to turn the skull will be sufficient to rotate the skull and give the desired indication.

Tree branch 38 preferably has a raised projecting part 68 which serves as a handle to facilitate turning of the branch about pot 22 without bringing the players hand into proximity with the magnets, which could possibly damage a wrist watch.

The legends or instructions pointed out by fingers 42 and 44 are of various types, each, however, having a number indicating the number of pins which a player may take if his turn indicates that particular legend. Each also has a picture corresponding with one of the tokens of which each player has a supply. Also each legend has the word Left or Right or the Words Players Choice, and these several indications are combined in various combinations.

The tokens, as previously stated, have different degrees of power, the most powerful being the Zombie. This has the grotesque figure which its name indicates, and in the scheme of the game where it appears on the board it permits the player to take four pins. If the player elects to give up a Zombie token, he may take six pins, or remove four pins from his own doll. Each player has a one Zombie when the game starts. The Zombie token is shown in FIGURE 6.

The next most powerful token is the shrunken head. It is shown in FIGURE 7 and entitles the player to three free pins if bracketed by the indicator. By giving up a shrunken head token the player may take five pins or remove three. Each player receives two shrunken head tokens at the start of the game.

The snake token (FIGURE 8) is the next most powerful token, and entitles the player to two free pins, or by giving up one of the snakes he may take three pins or remove two. Each player gets three snakes to start the game.

The least powerful token is the spider (FIGURE 9). Each player gets four of these, and by giving up a token may take two pins, or remove one. The spider indication on the board entitles the player to one free pin only.

The words Right, Left, and Players Choice are used when more than two are playing to indicate into whose doll a player may stick his pins, i.e., the player on his right, or on his left, as the case may be. If the legend says Players Choice, he may stick his pins into the doll of any player he chooses, or divide them among several, if he wishes. It will be apparent that there is the opportunity for the exercise of considerable skill and judgment in the spending of the, tokens to best advantage.

One of the Voodoo dolls is shown in FIGURE 5, and may consist of a body '70 of plastic or other suitable material in a form simulating a person as nearly as desired, and providing a large number of holes 72 for receiving pins. The number of holes in the doll is not important, but to be fair, each doll must have the same number of holes as each of the others.

One of the pins is shown in FIGURE 10, and comprises a cylindrical body 74 having a point 76 at one end. The material is not important, but it would be desirable to have enough pins to fill all the holes in all the dolls at one time, since in a close game a situation might arise wherein such a condition would come about.

In operation a player stirs the contents of the pot 22, and thereby sets pan 24 and its magnet arm 28 to rotating. It may be designed to coast a little after bone 34 is removed, so the players will have no inkling as to where the skull will react. After stirring the kettle, the player slowly rotates the tree branch by means of the handle 68 until the skull is seen to react by turning on its suspension element, after which the player may take the number of free pins indicated and stick them into the doll of the piayer on his right or left, as indicated, or he may have his choice if the legend so directs. If he wishes, he can give up a token and either take extra pins, or remove the designated number irom his doll. He therefore is free to use his own judgment to a substantial extent in advancing or protecting his fortunes. As stated, a player is eliminated when his doll is filled with pins and the player remaining in the game when all the others have been eliminated, wins the game.

It will be apparent that a game has been devised which involves a combination of chance and skill, and as such will be interesting to a wide variety of players. It will also be apparent that variations in the details of the game might be devised without departing from the principles of ti e present invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A game comprising a board, a member rotatabiy supported substantially centrally beneath the board, stylus engaging means on the rotatable member which is exposed for access above the board, an arm extending from the rotatable member in position to swing in a circle beneath the board by reason of rotation of the rotatable member, a magnet concealed beneath said board and supported at the outer end of said arm, a stylus positionable in engagement with said stylus engaging means to effect rotation of said magnet beneath the board, legends on said board for directing the play of the game and arranged in a circle adjacent the path of movement of said magnet, an outwardly and upwardly extending support journaled on said board for relative rotation about the axis of said stylus engaging means, an index on said support positioned to register with said lengends, said support being positioned to overhang the path of travel of said magnet, a. magnetic indicator suspended from said support substan-- tially directly over said path of travel of said magnet, and. said magnetic indicator and said magnet being constructed and arranged so that said magnetic indicator is visibly oscillated and attracted to said magnet as it reaches a posi-- tion overlying the latter.

2. A game comprising a board, a member rotatably supported substantially centrally beneath the board, stylus engaging means on the rotatable member, an arm ex tending from the rotatable member in position to swing in a circle beneath the board by reason of rotation of the rotatable member, a magnet supported at the outer end of the arm, a simulated pot on said board directly above said rotatable member and having an open bottom, a simulated bone in said pot extending through said open bottom in position to engage said stylus engaging means and rotate said rotatable member by reason of a stirring motion imparted to said simulated bone, legends on said board arranged about said pot, an outwardly and upward 1y extending support journalled for rotation about said pot, an index on said support positioned to register with said legends, said support being positioned to overhang the path of travel of said magnet, a simulated skull suspended from said support substantially directly over said path of travel, torsionally resilient suspension means supporting said skull from said support, said suspension means being oriented to cause said skull to face in one direction as related to said support, and a magnet carried by said skull in position to be influenced by the first mentioned magnet, the second mentioned magnet being oriented so as to tend, under the influence of said first mentioned magnet, to overcome said torsionally resilient support and turn said skull to face in another direction, as related to said support,

3. A game comprising a hollow board, an upwardly open pan rotatably supported substantially centrally within the board, stylus engaging ribs within the pan, an arm extending radially from the pan in position to swing in a circle within said hollow board by reason of rotation of said pan, a magnet supported at the outer end of said arm, a simulated bottomless pot on said board directly above said pan communicating with the interior of said hollow board, a simulated bone in said pot extending through the open bottom thereof in position to engage the ribs within said pan and rotate the same by reason of a stirring motion imparted to said simulated bone, legends on said board arranged in groups extending radially outwardly from said pot, a simulated tree branch journaled for rotation about said pot, having an index portion positioned to register with said groups of legends, said tree branch also having a limb portion extending outwardly in position to overhang the path of travel of said magnet, a simulated skull suspended from said tree branch substantially directly over said path of travel, torsionally resilient suspension means supporting said skull from said tree branch, said suspension means being oriented to cause said skull to face in one direction as related to said pot, and a magnet carried by said skull in position to be influenced by the first mentioned magnet, the second mentioned magnet being oriented so as to tend, under the influence of said first mentioned magnet, to turn said skull to face in another direction, as related to said pot.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS:

571,997 11/1896 Fall 273141 2,220,049 10/ 1940 Dunmore 46-239 2,257,636 10/1941 Cohen 273134 2,795,427 6/1957 Sachs 273l42 2,976,044 3/1961 Corpening 273-134 FOREIGN PATENTS 198,537 6/1923 Great Britain.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner. A. W. KRAMER, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A GAME COMPRISING A BOARD, A MEMBER ROTATABLY SUPPORTED SUBSTANTIALLY CENTRALLY BENEATH THE BOARD, STYLUS ENGAGING MEANS ON THE ROTATABLE MEMBER WHICH IS EXPOSED FOR ACCESS ABOVE THE BOARD, AN ARM EXTENDING FROM THE ROTATABLE MEMBER IN POSITION TO SWING IN A CIRCLE BENEATH THE BOARD BY REASON OF ROTATION OF THE ROTATABLE MEMBER, A MAGNET CONCEALED BENEATH SAID BOARD AND SUPPORTED AT THE OUTER END OF SAID ARM, A STYLUS POSITIONABLE IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID STYLUS ENGAGING MEANS TO EFFECT ROTATION OF SAID MAGNET BENEATH THE BOARD, LEGENDS ON SAID BOARD FOR DIRECTING THE PLAY OF THE GAME AND ARRANGED IN A CIRCLE ADJACENT THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF SAID MAGNET, AN OUTWARDLY AND UPWARDLY EXTENDING SUPPORT JOURNALED ON SAID BOARD FOR RELATIVE ROTATION ABOUT THE AXIS OF SAID STYLUS ENGAGING MEANS, AN INDEX ON SAID SUPPORT POSITIONED TO REGISTER WITH SAID LENGENDS, SAID SUPPORT BEING POSITIONED TO OVERHANG THE PATH OF TRAVEL OF SAID MAGNET, A MAGNETIC INDICATOR SUSPENDED FROM SAID SUPPORT SUBSTANTIALLY DIRECTLY OVER SAID PATH OF TRAVEL OF SAID MAGNET, AND SAID MAGNETIC INDICATOR AND SAID MAGNET BEING CONSTRUCTED AND ARRANGED SO THAT SAID MAGNETIC INDICATOR IS VISIBLY OSCILLATED AND ATTRACTED TO SAID MAGNET AS IT REACHES A POSITION OVERLYING THE LATTER. 